Explainer | Hong Kong research points to new route to treatments for coronavirus infection
- Hong Kong study published in top UK science journal shows for first time how coronavirus exploits victims’ antiviral defences
- University of Hong Kong team says discovery could help create more effective treatments to target coronaviruses
Researchers involved in the study say the discovery means more effective treatments for coronaviruses can be created.
Professor Yuen Kwok-yung, the lead researcher and a government health adviser, says the findings are an unexpected breakthrough in virology.
“We have worked on this study for seven years. When we saw the findings, we were very surprised. Why are the coronaviruses able to do so? This is a huge conceptual change in virology,” he told the Post. “No one has ever discovered this before.”
The Post unpacks the main findings of the study.
1. What did the study find out?
The study, carried out by academics including Yuen, found the coronaviruses could exploit a type of cysteine-aspartic protease called caspase-6 – an enzyme that breaks down protein – in an infected human body to facilitate viral replication.